My 1989 ford probe's alternator recantly broke, so i put a new one on, but the car wont start, what's wrong?

Question

i connected the alternator the same as the old one, my battery is fully charged ( i charged it after the old alternator died, and tested it today), the only thing i could think of is the electrical connections to the alternator... i put the two i remember taking off back on, but im not sure if there was a third connection. It could possibly be something else, since my headlights work fine, but nothing else electrical works... not even the signals or my interior light. Its not the battery, so im not to sure what else it dould be. Any help would be appriciated.

Answer 1

check to see if you tightened the battery cables.. oh and the alternator has nothing to do with the car starting..it just takes a good battery and starter to crank it.. after it starts, the alternator recharges the battery..

Answer 2

You could have possibly got the wrong alternator. A lot of vehicles have like two to four different alternators depending on the accessories in the vehicle like power locks, windows, etc. If your sure your battery is good and you wired it correctly then I would make sure I got the correct alternator and even if you charged the battery it doesn't necessarily mean it is good you should take it to an auto parts store and get it tested.

Answer 3

A 1989 Ford is pretty old car and if you you starting the car and it wont make a sound your starter is broken but if it makes a sound but wont start that is because something like your gas pump is broken or the engine went down with the alternator

Answer 4

you probably didn't hook up the groud wire on the bottom of alternator...or you could have gotten a bad alternator...it happens when you get remans sometimes..check you fuses and relays..but battery could be low in voltage...has to have at least 10 to crank...safety feature on newer vehicles...

Answer 5

Try the starter relay, chances are it got fried when the alternator diodes got cooked.